docs: def _apply_sort(cursor, sort_by, sort_direction):
          """
          Apply sort to a cursor.
  
          :param cursor: The cursor to apply sort on.
          :param sort_by: The field name to sort by.
          :param sort_direction: The direction to sort, "asc" or "desc".
          :return:
  
          """
          if sort_direction is not None and sort_direction.lower() == "desc":
              sort = pymongo.DESCENDING
          else:
              sort = pymongo.ASCENDING
          return cursor.sort(sort_by, sort)